Characterization of a Porous Carbon Material Functionalized with Cobalt-Oxide/Cobalt Core-Shell Nanoparticles for Lithium Ion Battery Electrodes

A nanoporous carbon (C) material, functionalized with Cobalt-Oxide/Cobalt (CoO/Co) core-shell nanoparticles (NPs), was structurally and chemically characterized with transmission electron microcopy (TEM) while its electrochemical response for Lithium ion battery (LIB) applications was evaluated as well. The results herein show that the nanoporous C material was uniformly functionalized with the CoO/Co core-shell NPs. Further the NPs were crystalline with fcc-Type lattice on the Co2+ oxide shell and hcp-Type core of metallic Co0. The electrochemical study was carried out by using galvanostatic charge/discharge cycling at a current density of 1000 mA g-1. The potential of this hybrid material for LIB applications was confirmed and it is attributed to the successful dispersion of the Co2+/ Co0 NPs in the C support.